In case you haven’t heard, the President has made a nomination…for the 14th Librarian of Congress.  The nominee in question is none other than Dr. Carla D. Hayden, currently the CEO of the Enoch Pratt Free Library in Baltimore.  If nominated, Dr. Hayden will become the first female and the first African-American Librarian of Congress, but she’s already made her mark for all the patrons with and for whom she has worked.

Dr. Hayden is widely described as one of the most experienced librarians in the country, and has spent her years at the Enoch Pratt Free Library connecting patrons with books and electronic resources, making vital connections with local schools, and creating a safe, engaging space for all patrons in a city that can often seem deeply divided.

Above all things, Dr. Hayden is a good librarian, which is something the Library of Congress desperately needs.  Though James Billington, the soon-to-be previous Librarian, was devoted to the job, his training is that of an historian.  There is nothing wrong with historians, mind–they are very good at taking care of things.  But the Library of Congress needs to be dragged into the 21st century, and made accessible to readers and researchers around the world–and that kind of job requires a good librarian.  Think about all the neat stuff you can do at our Library…all the programs and classes and technology available to patrons…you can thank Librarians for all of those.  So just think what Dr. Hayden will be able to do with the Library of Congress!

She is also an outspoken proponent of user privacy and rights, and the vital importance of libraries to functioning democracies.  In a 2003 interview with Ms. Magazine, she gave the following stellar quote:

Libraries are a cornerstone of democracy—where information is free and equally available to everyone. People tend to take that for granted, and they don’t realize what is at stake when that is put at risk.

I’ll let you meet the good Dr. Hayden for yourself in the video below, with hopes you enjoy!